Monday, August 18, 2008

Hard to Say Goodbye

I try to find joy in everything but I had to really ponder yesterday's situation to find the joy so that I could share this event. You see my oldest son leaves for Iraq next Saturday. We had carefully planned this past weekend around my son, meaning that he was in charge of plans. We ate at his favorite restaurants and eateries and we kept to his schedule doing our best to maximize our time together. The weekend was so much fun until we got to the goodbyes. Through the years during partings with my children, I have made it my practice to never cry as we say goodbye. I know that it is just as hard for my kids to say goodbye and I would never want them to carry my sadness while dealing with their own sadness. Instead I wait and cry in private. But yesterday as I hugged my son, I asked him to give me a big hug from his heart. As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I cried. He then got in his truck and drove back to South Carolina.

The rest of the evening seemed so heavy with sadness but today I got up grateful for all the good times we have had together this summer. We had a mini-vacation in June and a big family cookout in July. This weekend was the last of the celebrations and memory making.

So now I will turn my attention to preparing fun packages with goodies from home so that he will find some joy in every box.

Oh, I cry as I read this. What a beautiful boy and his mother. God Bless him and protect him while he is away. I will pray for his safe return and for you, as well. Blessings to you and your family. Peace and Hugs,Cyndy

Jo-Jo, My second comment tonight. I am so excited you are getting into this whole postcard swap idea. I take that as I can officially count you in! Yay! It will be a general autumn/fall theme. I'm brainstorming, too! So, get that craft paper ready. Can't wait to see what you come up with. I'm sure it will be lovely.

About Me

Welcome to Jojo's Joys, a place where I share bits and pieces of my daily living adventures here in Georgia and from lots of other places. I hope you’ll linger a bit to read a post or two and while you are at it, leave me a note and let me know what you've been up to. It’s always nice to hear from blog friends. Some people know me as Cheryl but my sweet granddaughters call me Jojo. Thanks for stopping by – hope to see you again, real soon!